This invention relates generally to aroma dispensers, and in particular to an aroma-dispensing tab that is stickable onto any surface.
As used herein, the term "aroma" is not limited to pleasant or savory smells but encompasses scents that function as insecticides, animal-repellents, air fresheners, deodorants or any other odor that acts to condition, modify or otherwise charge the atmosphere.
The aroma of perfumes and perfume-based products such as colognes and toilet waters was originally derived from the essential oils of plants. However, since the early 19th century, chemists have succeeded in analyzing many essential oils and in creating thousands of synthetics, some simulating natural products and others yielding altogether new scents. Perfumes today are largely blends of natural and synthetic. scents and of fixatives which equalize vaporization and enhance pungency. In most liquid scents, the ingredients are combined with alcohol.
Perfumes and perfume-based products are generally sprinkled, sprayed, rubbed or otherwise directly applied to the skin of the wearer. Because skin sensitivity is a highly individual characteristic and differs from person to person, when formulating and testing a perfume-based product, the manufacturer must run extensive tests on toxicity, dermatological irritation and allergenic reactions over a broad range of skin types. But even a product that is found to be non-reactive with all but a small percentage of typical skin types, may still not be commercially acceptable and create problems of product liability.
It is for this reason that the typical manufacturer confines his product line to those perfume-based products which have a proven record of acceptability, the manufacturer making no use of any solvent other than alcohol. This imposes tight restrictions on the available range of fragrances for personal use; for it precludes those natural and synthetic scents which, though highly pleasing, are nevertheless reactive with some skin types. Also excluded are scents which require or function best with solvents other than alcohol. Since the concentration and properties of the solvent govern the dissipation and persistence characteristics of the perfume, this prohibition rules out the possibilities for dissipation time control offered by non-alcoholic solvents.
Perfumes and perfume-based liquid scents are presently contained in bottles or spray-dispensers in various sizes, usually graded in fractions of an ounce. When such bottles are stored on a shelf, there is no problem of spillage; but when the user carries the bottle or vial in a purse, which is subject to jostling, one cannot be sure that it will not leak.
Moreover, while a user will normally apply a perfume of a given type to the skin to produce a fragrance suitable for outdoor use, say, on a warm afternoon, a fragrance of a different character may be more appropriate for indoor evening wear; and still another for another occasion on the same day. Yet it is not usually feasible for a user to carry several vials of perfume in her purse to satisfy all of these daily requirements.
Another factor that comes into play with liquid perfumes in the form of which they are presently dispensed is the matter of sampling. In determining whether a given perfume is to the taste of the user, a small sample is applied to the back of the hand so that the tester can smell it. But the momentary impression made by this test which typically takes place at the counter of a store is inadequate, and unless the user actually wears the perfume for at least a day in a variety of environments, the user's reaction is uncertain. Thus whether a perfume is excessively heavy or pungent in the judgment of a given user cannot be ascertained merely by briefly smelling a sample.
On the other hand, should a consumer, on the basis of hand sampling, set aside, say, five perfumes out of a choice of twelve as being of interest, then under present marketing practices, the consumer would have to buy five vials of the selected perfumes so that she could then actually put each to use before reaching a conclusion as to her true preferences. Since quality perfumes, even in the smallest bottles, are quite expensive, this test procedure is not one many consumers can afford.
An obvious solution to many of the above-identified problems is to provide a perfume that is not applied to the skin but which emits a fragrance in the proximity of the wearer. To this end, it is known to make use of sachets; that is, small bags containing a perfumed powder which serves to scent clothes. By placing a sachet in a clothes closet or drawer, the perfumes will permeate the clothing contained therein, and the perfume will linger when the article of apparel is worn.
But this approach has many drawbacks; for the range of perfumes that lend themselves to powdered or sachet form is very limited and does not, in practice, go much beyond a lavender fragrance. Moreover, one cannot carry a sachet on the person, for these are designed to scent clothing in a confined space.